


so i'm coming home (to you)

by rakuenoasis



Category: A3! (Video Game)
Genre: Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Finally, Introspection, Long-Distance Relationship, M/M, Not Beta Read, Panic Attacks, Pre-Slash, Slow Burn, Unresolved Emotional Tension, Yuki-centric, my longest yeah boy ever, oh yeah thank u ben&ben if u r reading this ily, we die like august
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-02
Updated: 2020-08-02
Packaged: 2021-03-06 01:29:12
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 11,650
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25645078
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rakuenoasis/pseuds/rakuenoasis
Summary: Home is a free space.
Relationships: Rurikawa Yuki & Tachibana Izumi, Rurikawa Yuki/Sumeragi Tenma
Comments: 18
Kudos: 98
Collections: A3 fic recs in case I get asked again, The Good Kush





	so i'm coming home (to you)

**Author's Note:**

> based on this [song](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hcpmQFwCK5g).  
> stan ben&ben
> 
> special thanks as well to this [a3 lime skin](https://archiveofourown.org/works/17489243) for seriously saving my ass and adding a lil pizzaz to the fic. turn on creator's style if you haven't to witness the magic yourself.
> 
> special thanks as well to my taho and hot choco as well for keeping me awake all this time.
> 
> EDIT: THERE'S [FANART](https://twitter.com/Kyuu_tan/status/1292044001718104064?s=19) FOR THIS NOW HAHSHDJD IM CRYING THIS MEANS SO MUCH TO ME,,
> 
> EDIT 2: SOMEONE MADE A [FILO SOCMED AU ADAPTATION](https://twitter.com/applecrumbx/status/1356201746431762435) OF THIS AHSHJDSD I'M HONORED OMG

"Hyodo," Sakyo starts. "Control your roommate."

It's Sakuya who responds back. "Hey now, let's calm down about this, okay? I'm sure that whatever Banri did isn't that harmful or something like that, right?"

It takes Sakyo one tiny finger pointing at the mess of yolk and egg whites for the entire room to wince at the sight of them lying on his head. "Explain why a raw egg got cracked into my head the minute I wore my hat."

The same room could see Juza's devasted look, complimented with a very exhausting sigh. "I'll be sure to tell him. 'M sorry on his behalf."

Kazunari laughs. "Sounds like Settsuar's been getting more hyped than usual these days, huh?"

Juza sighs and throws his head back onto the couch. "Heard that their exams this week have been cancelled. So he's been, how you call it, more pumped than usual at the one-week vacation they've been given."

"He could be using his free time for practise," Sakyo remarks as he walks past them and into the kitchen to get rid of the goop that's been sitting on his hair for God knows how long. "Autumn Troupe's up for regional tours now. We all know that."

"Ah, that's right," Muku eventually pipes in once they finally watch Sakyo washing his hair on the kitchen sink. "The entire troupe will be gone next week, huh?"

Kumon throws his arm around Juza and squeals. "Good luck on your performances next week, Big Brother. I'm sure you'll seriously kill it on stage! But of course, that's my amazing Big Bro for you!"

"Now now, Kumopi. Ya look like you're totes gonna murder him before he could even step onto the stage."

It earns a laugh from the party in the room and an even more frantic apology from Kumon. Juza could only sigh in response.

"If anything, I'd rather have Kumon be in Settsu's place instead. The guy will turn to be a pain in the ass even more once it's gonna be the six of us on the train."

"And when Sakyo said that they'd have to be paired with our original roommates, he really meant business," Taichi adds on. 

"So sad. Time to press F for ya, Hyodle,"

"F...? What does that..."

"It's best if you don't know," Masumi mutters, all attention still on his phone. 

"Which means Taicchan's going to be real lucky next week, huh?"

"Of course!" Taichi exclaims. "This is _Omi_ we're talkin' about, after all! I'd be in a rut if I was paired with someone else!"

This earns him a confused stare from Juza, to which Taichi adds on with a, "Not that I would mind being paired with someone like Juza, of course! But Omi's like a perfect roommate for me. He's so cool and reliable!"

He then opens his phone, possibly in an attempt to look for something. "Actually, Omi and I are currently working on a project right now. It started out as something random and more on for ourselves. But," And then he puts his phone down onto the table, the screen showing a picture of a wooden nameplate with Omi's and Taichi's names painted on it. Next to their names are cute little scribbles and paintings with different kinds of pies and an oven on Omi's side and Taichi's trademark eyeball monster art on the his own terf. 

This earns a gasp from the others.

"Dudes, that's totes cute!" Kazunari exclaimed. "Now I kinda wanna make my own nameplate now. For me and Mukkun, y'know?"

Muku laughs. "That's a great idea, Kazu! We can do that together."

"And that's where we come in, of course!" Taichi cuts in. "Omi's pretty amazing at calligraphy, as you can see! So he's gonna write all our names on the boards we've assembled."

"And your job here is...?" Masumi asks, now somewhat interested at the topic.

"To buy whatever supplies Omi needs. And assembly line, of course!" Taichi then takes the phone back and slips it into his pocket. "Omi's just going to finish the Summer Troupe's boards. And then we plan on leavin' em to Izumi for Kazu for distribution," And then he pauses, just realising that they're technically in the same room, sitting next to each other at that. "I-I mean, if Kazu's okay with that of course!"

"That's no problemo, of course!" Kazunari replies with a strange newfound enthusiasm. "Leave it to me!"

"Still, that's so cool," Muku comments. "Kazu and I are kind of like that too. We read manga together and even doodle on whatever random sketchbook Kazu buys for that day. In fact, we're almost finished with one right now."

"Mukkun's totally right!" Kazunari exclaims. "Mukkun's, like, awesome as a roommate. He's kinda become my art buddy now. Never knew my little friend could be a great artist and source of inspiration for me."

Muku, in response, covers his hands out of embarrassment. "K-Kazu, that feels too much..."

"Well, you two do seem like a great pair together!" Taichi remarks and then turns to Masumi. "Like how Masu and Tsuzuru have been getting well along better recently, right?"

"...It's not like that," Masumi utters. "Just because we write scripts together now doesn't really mean much. Still sucks havin' him as a roommate. Pain in the ass especially when he passes out and refuses any food or drink."

"Well, nothing's perfect," Kumon says. "But at least you two have a thing going on here."

"What about you and Sumi?"

"He's been teaching me some cool simple circus tricks. Like how to juggle balls and stuff!"

This earns Kumon a stifled collective laughter coming from Kazunari and Taichi...and that earns them a smack in their arms from Juza.

"Don't corrupt his innocence like this," Juza glares at them just enough for the two to finally zip their lips and stay silent.

Muku then turns to Yuki, who's just been knitting during the entire conversation. "What about you, Yuki? I'm sure you have a lot of stories about Tenma."

"Now that you mentioned it," Kumon looks at Muku before turning his attention to Yuki. "I'm sure your stories with Tenma are something else, right? Since you always bicker and all that."

The response coming from the silent boy, however, is not what the others have actually...expected.

"Well, sure we fight. But..."

Yuki finds himself turning again to the calendar across them for the nth time since they gathered around the living room like this, the big purple mark encircling the number "30" catching his attention just enough to forget about the knitted cloth on his hands or the pairs of eyes wondering at why he's been staring at the calendar for an unusual amount of time.

The sight of it just burns Yuki's eyes enough until he later finds himself back to reality and to where he really is.

What were they talking about? Oh, right. They were trying to pry out whatever juicy story between he and Tenma that is worthy of gossip.

He finds the whole intent of it useless and even intrusive to their privacy. 

But the silent, "...I don't really have much to say about this, honestly." that later comes out of his lips isn't exactly connected to that.

"So stop asking about it, okay?"

☆

_The first time Tenma left, it was with an unsure intent of actually returning back to the dorms and into their room._

_It was probably the most peaceful night Yuki thought he'd ever have. Or that's what he thought, at least, until the lights were finally shut off and Yuki was unable to sleep._

_It's not that a sleepless night isn't something Yuki isn't used to; it's quite the opposite actually. Yuki grew up not being able to really sleep at night. He knows it's not a case of insomnia. It's just that he had been able to sleep better when he was still roommates with his sisters._

_When he moved into Mankai, the one thing Yuki was surprised to find out is that he's been able to sleep better. He didn't know what did it, if it was the comparably better mattress or the ambiance of the room that felt so warm and cozy, too full of something he's yet to put his finger on despite the vacancies amongst the other untouched rooms. Maybe it was how he set-up the room, seeing that the shrunken space as compared to his room back in his old house surprisingly gave him more freedom to decorate it the way he wanted. He didn't know. All he knew was that it's been months since he was able to sleep for a whole week straight._

_Then Tenma left. Although the room with him gone was so silent and comforting, the crumpled feeling in Yuki's chest kept him awake for the rest of that night. And the night after. And suddenly the set-up of his space didn't matter so much anymore, nor did the mattress, nor did the warm ambiance that supposedly flooded through the room._

_Sleepless nights turned to ten eternities until Tenma was finally back into the dorms and into the stream of mesh that made up their room._

_The night Tenma returned however, Yuki found himself falling asleep soundly once more._

☆

Yuki, for some reason he couldn't exactly word out, doesn't eat dinner and instead proceeds to finally reply to Tenma after a long day of ignoring him in exchange of talking to basically anyone else that isn't him.

**Tenma.S-621**

They're doing a what now?

**Yuki-0708**

Nameplate project or whatever you call it. For room identification.

**Yuki-0708**

That flight better hurry itself up unless it wants me to take up your space on the nameplate.

**Tenma.S-621**

Okay wow fuck you, first all.

**Tenma.S-621**

But isn't it useless though? We've all been living together for three years, after all.

For some reason, it's become practical routine for them now to send each other messages every time Tenma is out doing something related to his job.

Yuki honestly appreciates it. It's moments like these, the quiet yet filled exchanges between them even with this distance and means, that Yuki is able to find himself comfortable. Noises aren't exactly his forte. And by this point, it's a miracle that he's been able to keep up with the different kinds of volumes and voices flooding the entire dorms.

Still, it doesn't mean the silence isn't welcoming. Compared to whenever Tenma is here, for some reason, Yuki is able to act more casual around him. Or basically anyone who wants to strike up an SNS conversation with him. But weirdly, he can act more like himself in front of the hack.

Tenma might have picked up some sort of awareness on this along the way. Maybe that's why Tenma still insists on talking to him through SNS, even if it interferes so much with his schedule.

**Yuki-0708**

That's not what somebody who was looking for clothes in the soup section that one time would say.

But it doesn't mean the worry of Tenma being trapped in that damned country for days now hasn't been bothering Yuki during that same span of time.

**Tenma.S-621**

It was _one_ time.

Just how _long_ is this stupid storm going to wreck its own havoc before Tenma can finally fly back home?

☆

_The second time Tenma left, finally for work, Yuki got a call. From Tenma, of all people._

_And before Tenma could say his hello, Yuki immediately cut his supposed words off._

_"I'm calling the police," Yuki uttered harshly. "Shouldn't you be in your shoot or something?"_

_"Oi! I'm already here making the effort to call you!" Tenma yelled back. "Jeez, I just wanted to ask how you're doing over there. I mean...it must be lonely without me right there, right?"_

_Yuki didn't answer his question, instead resorted to yelling back, "Beeeep! The number you dialed is not yet in service!" before finally hanging up and throwing himself back to his own pillows._

_That night, once again, Yuki wasn't able to sleep._

☆

Yuki doesn't know how he long he's dozed off. But he does wake up to a rather loud knock on the door.

He knows it's not Tenma. But he opens the door with the sudden rush of energy pulsated in his veins only to greet with Izumi and the pillow she's holding close to her chest.

No words needed to be exchanged as Yuki lets Izumi into, well, his room.

He does slip out a little, "You know, it's fine even if you don't do this." as he climbs up onto his own bed.

During those days when Tenma isn't around, especially during his recent outings, Izumi fills in the missing space of the room. It's during those days as well that Yuki finds himself growing closer to their director. It's an unexpected bond born out of worry and hesitations. And even Yuki is afraid that he might end up saying the wrong thing, just like how it's always been every time someone attempts to befriends him.

It's been two years since that day and Yuki still wonders how he hasn't fully blown up at her yet. Maybe Mankai did change him for the better. Or maybe it was just Izumi being her patient, curry-loving self. Whatever it is, he's still glad that Izumi has stuck through those nights despite all verbal hesitations coming from Yuki himself.

"Nonsense," Izumi climbs onto Tenma's bed and props her pillow along with his other left plushy comforts. "I know how lonely it feels to be sleeping inside a room just by yourself, especially for someone just as young as you."

"Director, I'm eighteen years old."

"Does it really matter?"

Izumi then finally settles herself onto the bed, before adding a, "I don't think anyone deserves to be sleeping alone like this, not when the room is full enough for two."

Yuki pauses in his tracks, griped by something--a memory--that punches him right where it really hurts.

Didn't his second sister say something like that once? The day after their eldest moved for college...?

"Yuki?!"

He almost catches himself calling out to his sister's name, rather stupidly, before realising that he's faced with a blurry image of Izumi.

"Wh-What? What are you so noisy for...?"

"What am _I_ noisy for? When you're clearly crying?!"

Ah?

Yuki brings his fingers to his cheek and feels a stream of wetness on his pads. Izumi's right. He _is_ crying.

But for what?

As if by unconscious instinct, he tucks away those other even blurrier images--nights spent sleeping on someone's arms, pinky fingers interlocked, luggage and bags on the doorstep disappearing so rapidly even if his hand is still moving high up in the air--and looks down.

"I wonder why..."

☆

_12:01 AM  
_ _September 2, 2020_

**Tenma.S-621**

Oi, heard you were crying.

**Tenma.S-621**

...

**Tenma.S-621**

The good news is that the storm here seems to be slowly moving away.

**Tenma.S-621**

Weather forecast said that it's moving to the west or something.

**Tenma.S-621**

Igawa said that west meant England. And I was right! Ha! Who's dumb at directions now? >:D

**Tenma.S-621**

...The bad news though is that we still don't know if our flight will ever be cleared.

**Tenma.S-621**

Not that I think you'd care of course. You're probably having a spectacular time with the others!

**Tenma.S-621**

Well, two can play it that game. I'm having my own fun in the hotel right now. Can you believe it? They have chocolate baths! How insane is that?

**Tenma.S-621**

...

**Tenma.S-621**

Good night. Hope you're sleeping well.

(That night, Yuki doesn't really sleep. Again.

He doesn't lift a finger to answer the buzz on his phone, either.

Well, at least until morning eventually comes soon afterwards and Yuki finally musters the energy to reply to him.)

**Yuki-0708**

Creep. How did you even know that?

**Yuki-0708**

........

**Yuki-0708**

Night. Hope that chocolate bath knocked your senses out.

☆

But for the most part, nothing really changes whenever Tenma is out. Yuki still kicks himself out of bed as early as five in the morning and knocks his senses enough for him to go on about his usual routine. He brushes his teeth. He takes a nice shower in time before Taichi messes the bathroom. He fixes his things and joins a sleepy Muku in the living room before finally being called to eat breakfast by Omi.

Today's breakfast just so happens to be his favourite: classic chicken omurice topped with a ketchup drawing of his bear. Compared to Omi's last attempt, he seems to have mastered it this time around.

For that, Yuki says a proud word of thanks to the chef before finally digging in.

The omurice stays the same in flavour, just like everything else in Yuki's life that isn't related to Tenma.

And Yuki prefers it that way.

Breakfast later ends with Yuki and Muku rushing to the door with their umbrellas. Although this day holds the first breeze of autumn, the forecast from last night talking about the possible chances of rain still hasn't left their minds since. They don't want a repeat of autumn last year when they were stranded because of the rain. They definitely _don't_.

"We're off!"

And the pair finally leaves, holding onto their umbrellas as they stroll along the streets of Veludo. The skies are somewhat clouded with heavy heaps. From high up, they could see the mountains of town slowly turning into shades of reds and yellows. Even the leaves below their shoes crack just right when stepped on by them. The leaves on their sides fall around them so frequently that Yuki has been able to catch a few or so leaves on their trail to school.

It takes a while when Muku voices out exactly what's been on Yuki's mind. "It really is autumn, huh..."

Yuki smiles in response. "Isn't it obvious?" And then he hands out a yellow little leaf to Muku. "For you, just so you can remember it."

Muku laughs and takes the leaf from his fingers. "Thank you," And then as if a thought suddenly just came into mind, he pauses for a while. "I have an idea! Why don't we collect leaves and then make a scrapbook out of it? As a good luck charm to Autumn Troupe for next week?"

"Really? But they'll be leaving in two days, right?"

"We can always ask help from Kazu, after all."

Ah, he does have a point.

Yuki nods and crouches down to pick up another leaf. "Alright. As long as I get to collect some for my own sake."

"Hm? What do you mean?"

"Oh you know, for costume ideas, dress pattern ideas...the usual."

 _Tenma_.

(He wonders if it's also autumn in where Tenma is right now.)

☆

Yuki knows that Tenma is probably asleep at this time. But he still makes it to the school rooftop to take a picture of those leaves and send them to him, regardless.

**Yuki-0708**

I know you're asleep but look what we decided to pick up. Japan's fresh leaves, in case you're forgetting what they look like.

The message comes out faster than what Yuki expected.

**Tenma.S-621**

How can I be asleep when you just woke me up with your useless messaging?

**Tenma.S-621**

But here. It's already autumn in Germany. Have some leaves, as well.

Yuki could only scoff. Has Tenma now picked up leaf-collecting as a hobby? Or did he somehow expect this from Yuki, who also happened to have picked up leaves a while ago as well?

**Yuki-0708**

Creep. You just miss me.

Yuki doesn't pay any attention to the buzz on his phone as he goes down, this time ready to join Muku for lunch.

☆

_The third time around, Tenma didn't call. Instead, Izumi decided to camp in their room for the meantime._

_Yuki couldn't make sense of the entire situation, of why Izumi barged in without warning in the first place. But if there was anything he learned from living with this Curry Alien, it's that he has to go with it if he wants her to finally shut up._

_"You're like a five-year old," he said, pulling out a futon from his cabinet. "A whiny and spoiled five-year old."_

_"Aw come on, Yuki!" Izumi exclaimed as she set her snacks onto Tenma's huge table. "Sleepovers are fun once in a while, you know?"_

_"I don't."_

_And at that point, that was when Izumi realised her mistake._

_"Oh no...Yuki, I really didn't mean it that way! I'm sorry!"_

_Yuki put down the futon and sighed. "Look, I can't take that against you. It's not everyday you meet someone who hasn't...you know...had experiences with friends since childhood."_

_"And that's why we're doing this! To reclaim your youth and live it like you should have!"_

_"Director, I'm fifteen. I think unlike you, I haven't cracked a bone yet."_

_"Hey! I'm not_ that _old!_ "

_"Neither am I. So stop making me feel like I am."_

_"Well, you're right,"_

_Izumi finally sat down on her futon and pulled out her phone for a bit. "Besides, Tenma was the one who asked me to do this."_

_Wait, what?_

_"Tenma...texted you."_

_"And he didn't do the same to you? I heard that he's pretty much texted almost everyone else here."_

_"Almost everyone but me?!"_

_He glowered at Izumi's phone and then pouted, later turning away from her, with his reddening cheeks puffed out. "Fine by me. Two play can it that game."_

_Izumi has been silent for an awfully long time. And Yuki knew that if Izumi was this quiet, it meant something bad. He didn't know what kind of bad just happened. But he could only guess that it was a kind of bad coming from him._

_Mentally, he groaned. If there was anything he seriously hated about himself, it's not knowing if he's gone overboard or what._

_He then turned to Izumi, preparing an apology at the back of his mind until he caught a glimpse of the on cheeky grin on her face._

_Now this silence._ This _kind of silence was worse._

_"Sounds like someone's jealous," Izumi teased._

_Yuki proceeded to turn away again, apology discarded and full vigor from a while ago back in top shape. "No I'm not!"_

_"You know, Tenma did tell me that he planned on calling you a while ago buuuut he then remembered that you threatened to call the police on him and hung up before he could say anything else."_

_It took a while before the reminder suddenly became familiar to Yuki._

_Oh. It was about that._

_"And so what? He was in the middle of the shoot-"_

_"He wasn't," Izumi cut him off. "You know Tenma very well. He doesn't call nor text unless it's his break time. That thinking alone just shows how little you trust him with this."_

_Yuki hated to admit it but Izumi was right. What was he thinking?_

_Immediately, Yuki grabbed his phone and sighed. "Fine. But after this, I'm throwing my phone away and checking on whatever bullcrap the shitty actor has to say tomorrow morning."  
_

_"Fair enough."_

_Instead of a call like what Izumi expected however, Yuki opened his SNS and typed,_

**Yuki-0708**

It's me. Sorry for last time.

**Yuki-0708**

I don't really do well with calls most of the time. So let's just text it out here, okay? Good night.

And as if by lightning and magic, Tenma's response came faster than what Yuki expected.

**Tenma.S-621**

Fine by me.

**Tenma.S-621**

Good night, Yuki. :)

_Creep. What a real creep, was what Yuki thought at that very instant before shoving the phone into his pillow._

☆

To the surprise of absolutely nobody, Yuki isn't an afterschool club kind of person. That's why when he went back to the dorms by himself, the first person he approached was none other than Kazunari himself.

"On behalf of the Wonder Boy, who isn't here right now," he starts. "We want to enlist your help with something."

And after explaining Muku's idea from this morning, Yuki feels like he has just seen Kazunari grow another pair of head.

"A scrapbook for the Autumn Troupe? That sounds like totes amazing! We should totally do it!"

Yuki immediately puts his finger on Kazunari's lips, "Don't be too loud about this, sheesh. You know how the puppy gets once he hears about a surprise."

"Right, right. My bad," is what Kazunari says once Yuki's finger retracts. "But still, in two days...I mean, it's possible. And I can do it alone, of course. But it's just your scheds that I'm very very worried about."

"Don't know about Muku," Yuki replies. "But I go home early from school. You know that. Besides, we can ask Sakuya and some other people to help us with this. Muku's done pretty much of the leaf collecting business." Just to prove it, he takes out the plastic of leaves that's been in his schoolbag for the entire day now. "All of these are Muku's. MIne are right," He brings out a much smaller bag of leaves. "Here. So you don't have to worry even if Muku can't help."

"That's true. But knowing Mukkun, he'll want to find a way to do the nitty-gritty work as well."

Yuki sighs in response. "Unfortunately, that's true."

"I can ask Muku if he wants to stay up again. Just hopin' for the best."

"That he doesn't pass out on the table?"

"Defs."

He chuckles for a bit. "Thank you, Kazunari, You're a real life-saver."

"The honour should go to Mukkun, though!"

"Of course," Yuki agrees. "We better thank him for this later."

With that, Yuki leaves the room, ideas for an autumn-themed scrapbook now flooding in his head as he goes back to his own quarters.

"I'm back, shitty actor,"

And for a second, he almost forgets that Tenma is still stranded in Germany.

☆

_On days when Tenma's leave goes on for two or more days, Yuki likes to go through his things._

_Not because he wants to mess with them or find out what rich-owned item he has in his cabinets and boxes, of course. But mainly, it's because of the loads of CDs of Romance and Family Dramas that he's been keeping from them for so long. Which irritates Yuki for two reasons: because they could've been watching something more entertaining other than boring wildlife shows and because Tenma has such a huge ego to even keep these CDs to begin with._

_Prior to this, Yuki was never really interested in anything related to celebrities and real-life entertainment. It's not because of a personal grudge or anything. Rather, it's because he doesn't see the point of it getting so much attention than warranted. Living with two sisters who were such die-hard fans of people like Tenma didn't really help with understanding it either._

_On one of those leaves, he was able to find a show about a high school romcom movie. Pretty stellar yet average-looking, especially with the plot just having the bad boy and nice girl tropes as the main cast. Honestly, Yuki thought, Tenma's acting could go to much better places than this._

_But it_ was _a hit for a reason, right? So it's got to be good._

_Once Yuki saw that there was nobody in the common area anymore, he sneaked downstairs and turned on the TV. He plopped the CD into one of those VCR machines (or whatever the techie people called it) and threw himself to the couch until he was able to find a comfortable position._

_The first scene showed a night in an alleyway, with what appeared to be the spotlights highlighting Tenma's shades and jean jacket._

_Yuki could almost laugh at just how horrible Tenma looked. But he didn't want to get risked being caught, of course. The speakers were already set to the lowest volume and he knew that if he laughed, it would overpower everything close to audible in the room. So instead, he sat in silence and let the movie go on._

_Except he didn't know at what part he had dozed off, however. But when Yuki woke up, he noticed two things._

_The first was that he wasn't watching that movie about a bad boy and his cute girlfriend. Instead, he was staring at a rather angry on-screen Tenma screaming at someone who was wearing an almost identical suit to his._

_The second was the blanket draped over his body._

☆

In the end, they were able to gather around eight members for this project. With the addition of Yuki, Muku, and Kazunari, they make up the entire crew for "Operation: Autumn's Super Good Luck Charm!"

"And now we're opening our first meeting for this project!" Kazunari exclaims. Everyone else applauds in unison. "Now before we get started, let's hear about what we have to say to our newfound members, yes?"

"I'll be in your care!" yells Sakuya.

"I was just dragged into this but...take care of me," Masumi utters, scratching the back of his neck.

"I would like to start the wonderful explanation of Japan's art adventures! Take care of me!" Citron exclaims.

"It's 'exploration'. And it's just a regular scrapbook," Yuki bluntly replies. "But here's to hoping that we don't mess this up."

"I-I'll be in your care," Muku said with a shy-looking smile.

"As long as there are triangles, I'm more willing to join!" Misumi chirps happily.

"Anything to make Big Bro happy is already worth joining!" Kumon chirps back.

"I-I know how to work with leaves and art so...I'm excited to work with you all," Tsumugi says, bowing his head.

"Ah, the mystical spell and wonder of nature is without a doubt limitless. I shall make the best poem fit to channel nature's good luck to them," Homare announces.

"Fufu~. I'm just excited to be working with everyone like this," Azuma expresses with a smile.

"That's great, that's great! Now all we just gotta do is to pull our braincells in until we figure out how to do this in two days. For this, we're gonna draw lots so we can see who'll be assigned in where. Mukkun, show them those sticks!"

Muku pulls out nine wooden sticks with seemingly same heights. "All we just got to do is to draw one stick from this pile. For this project, we'll have three departments: photography, writing, and layout. Kazu and I have started on the layout already which is why there are only nine sticks here. So everyone...may the odds be in your favour."

Yuki feels a buzz on his knees. Sighing, he takes out his phone and opens to see a new message from Tenma.

**Tenma.S-621**

Am I late to the meeting? O.o

Yuki could only groan in annoyance.

**Yuki-0708**

Buzz off. You're not even a part of this.

And Yuki shoves his phone to the side before finally taking a stick from Muku's grip.

☆

In the end, it seems that Yuki got into the department he least expected.

"How are we even going to do this?" Yuki asks, turning to his co-photography department members. "Isn't Ma like the camera guy here? We obviously can't ask for the pictures from him. It will ruin the surprise."

"That's why we need to have a contingency plan for this," Tsumugi replies. If there's anything Yuki's still thankful for despite everything that just happened, it's that his department is composed of actual normal people...if he can consider Sakuya part of the normal range, that is.

"Taking pictures of them in secret would be creepy..."

Suddenly, an idea pops into Yuki's mind. A _very_ complicated idea, at that.

"I think I know how to solve this dilemma," Yuki says, which draws him attention form both Tsumugi and Sakuya. "I just need to ask someone for help."

For the first time in hours, he finally opens his phone.

**Yuki-0708**

Okay maybe we need your help on this.

**Yuki-0708**

Am in the Photography Dept. with Tsumugi and Energy Concentrate. Need to get pictures of the Autumn Troupe.

And again, as if by lightning and magic combined, Tenma immediately replies.

**Tenma.S-621**

Knew you'd come into the light, eventually. ;)

Whatever, really. Doesn't matter if he's such a bored creep looking out for his messages like that. He's that desperate for help at this point.

"Congrats, guys. Looks like Tenma's on our side now."

☆

The plan is only as simple as words can go. It's executing the plan that proves itself to be difficult. 

Yuki's only lucky that he's in charge of taking Taichi's pictures. And Taichi, for all his idiosyncrasy and energy, is much easier to handle than if he took practically anyone else.

It's just the entire idea of hanging out along Veludo Way that's unexpected for Yuki.

Stupid Tenma, setting him up just like that, without his permission most especially.

**Yuki-0708**

I'm going to castrate you for this.

**Tenma.S-621**

HEY. I'm CLEARLY helping here you know.

"Yuki, over here!"

It takes a while before the ever-so exasperated Yuki is finally able to catch up with Taichi.

"Why on the slide, to be exact?"

Taichi makes his way up to the top of the slide with a wide grin. "Because playgrounds are like _the_ thing whenever this season comes, y'know? Plus, it's so cool doing a photoshoot on the playground! Who knows? Ten-chan's connections really do might hit me up for a modelling job!"

Yuki almost tries to stifle his laughter as he repeats what Taichi wanted to say to Tenma.

**Yuki-0708**

Good luck on getting the puppy a modeling job since he's now counting on you for it. And those aren't my words. You were, apparently, the one who set him up for this.

**Tenma.S-621**

OI, WHAT?!

"Come on, Yuki! I think I found my perfect angle. Now picture me, picture me!"

He exits his LIME, grabs Taichi's phone, and opens the camera all while adjusting the device enough to get Taichi's so-called "best angle".

Yuki just hopes that Tsumugi and Sakuya are having a better time with their own assignments.

☆

_The first time Yuki sees a real camera, he is eight._

_The artsy genes, as his big sisters would call it, apparently runs in the family enough that his second sister just started yet another project idea despite the unfinished ones tucked into the corner of their shared room._

_"I promise, Yuki! I'm really_ really _going to be serious about it this time!"_

_"Is that so? Then what about the gift we were supposed to give to mom last year?"_

_"I was having exams!" she retorted, holding onto the tiny camera like it was her lifeline. "You know that all too well, Yuki."_

_Yuki could only sigh in defeat. "Fine, fine. Relay to me whatever that astounding project idea of yours is, your Majesty."_

_His sister, in response, grinned. And Yuki knew that if she grinned like that, she meant wild business. Wild business that he himself was afraid of getting into._

_Sometimes, Yuki just wonders why he's ever related to energy concentrates like her sisters, happy and dramatic just like the actor teens he'd see in movies. He made a mental solemn promise to himself from there that he wouldn't start acting like that once he becomes a teenager._

_"You see," she started. "You know how big sis is going to move out next week?"_

_Wait...what?_

_Everything in Yuki's mind just...stopped. Which was weird, considering that the sister in front of him was still moving, still fumbling with the camera in her hands. Which was weird, because Yuki knew that his body was still moving for some reason. Was he doing this? Why was he moving a lot? But even so, why did it feel like everything around him just froze in place._

_He felt something wet on his face. He felt his heart pounding against his own ribcage._

_"B-Big sis...is going to..."_

_Her second big sister gasped. "Oh shoot! I wasn't supposed to tell you! Yuki, that was a joke! Big Sis isn't going to leave us! She's going to stay forever! I was...messing...you! Yuki...me...Yuki...Yu...k...i...!"_

_For the first time in his life, Yuki couldn't breathe._

☆

"Alright, we need a status report."

Tsumugi put the photos down onto Tenma's table and sighs. "I'm never touching technology like this ever again..."

"Ah, didn't you have Omi teach you how to work with a camera?" Sakuya asks in obvious curiosity.

He sighs. "Yes. I didn't know cameras could be so complicated. It's no wonder you all rely on Omi for this."

"Even printing is complicated." Yuki adds in.

"That, especially yes. How were things on your end, Sakuya?"

Sakuya puts his own photos on the table. "It went well, actually. Director helped with a lot!"

Oh, that's unexpected.

"Director helped?" Tsumugi asks, surprised.

"Mhm! Since I went with taking pictures of everyone else, we went around hiding from the other Autumn Troupe members just to get everyone else roped into these pictures," Sakuya laughs. "It's funny, actually. Director called us 'camera ninjas'."

"Camera ninjas? Sounds like something I should call you and Director from now on, no?"

"That wouldn't make sense out of context, don't you think?"

"Right and...wait,"

Yuki takes a polaroid from the pile. "Is this..."

Tsumugi leans in to take a look and widens his eyes. "Oh my goodness...is that Homare sleeping on Hisoka's lap?"

Sakuya giggles. "We were honestly afraid that Hisoka might move and probably attack us on instinct. But Chikage was kind enough to tell us what angles we're safe stepping on."

"Ha? That doesn't make any sense."

"We honestly thought the same, as well. Chikage _does_ know him more than us at all, for some reason."

Tsumugi then goes through the pile only to find multiple copies of the same image. "Why are there so many copies of this, though?"

"Azuma requested copies."

"Of course," Tsumugi sighs. "How are things on your end, Yuki?"

Yuki stares at his phone in thought. "Wait for it..."

The three of them hear a ping sound coming from Yuki's phone.

Yuki smiles, showing the stream of pictures sent to his phone, by none other than Tenma of course. Tsumugi and Sakuya lean in and gasp. 

"All taken care of by the hack himself."

**Tenma.S-621**

The pictures of Taichi from a while ago and scenery pictures from here, just like what you've asked for.

☆

_"Do you ever think of switching roommates with someone?"_

_Yuki could only laugh. "I wish. Dealing with the hack is such a handful. I deserve an award for this."_

_Izumi nodded. "I mean, there's that. But he's usually gone, right?"_

_"Mm. Not like there's anything I could do about it. He's the one with a big job, a big responsibility, if you will. Not like he can skip on it just like that."_

_"Is that so..."_

_"But..."_

_Yuki turned towards the glowing light of his phone, revealing a stream of messages coming from Tenma who was still talking about how he got lost in the train station of Paris...or something like that. And unconsciously, he smiled for a bit._

_"...I wouldn't want anything to be changed."_

☆

They're currently in the middle of assembling the entire scrapbook when they hear a knock on Kazunari's door.

"Who's there?" Kazunari asks.

"Me."

Recognising the voice, Kazunari then stands up and opens the door to reveal Tasuku, holding up a letter.

"Letter for Yuki."

Yuki then puts his phone down the instant he hears his name and stands up. 

"Weird..." Yuki mumbles.

"Right..." Azuma replies. "Yuki never really gets letters from anyone."

"Not even from his family," Sakuya whispers. "I'm worried, really."

"There's nothing for you to be worried about," Tasuku affirms after overhearing what Sakuya just mumbled. "I checked the sender and it looked like it came from Sendou."

Yuki takes the letter from his hands and gasps.

"Sendou..."

"Is there something wrong, Yuki?" Kumon asks, concern growing in his voice.

"Not really...it's just where my second sister lives now."

"You have sisters?!" Sakuya exclaimed.

Ah, that's right, Yuki thinks. He doesn't really talk about his family that much. Nor does he even mention them unless someone asks. And even then, he leaves his answers at vague. 

"Two, actually. The second one lives in Sendou now."

He then finally sits down and stares at the written envelope again, at his sister's name written in small-sized kanji, specifically.

"Although it's kind of weird."

"How so?"

"My sister never really writes to anyone..."

☆

**Tenma.S-621**

A letter? From which sister?

**Yuki-0708**

The second one.

It takes a while before Tenma finally responds.

**Tenma.S-621**

Okay. Now that's totally weird.

Yuki could only huff.

**Yuki-0708**

I know right.

**Yuki-0708**

You doing anything today?

It takes another while again before Tenma shoots another message to him.

**Tenma.S-621**

Unfortunately, yeah. Not just embassy matters. But they decided on doing some kind of segment with me strolling around Berlin. Can't exactly text once the cameras start rolling.

**Tenma.S-621**

Sorry about that.

Yuki finds himself yawning for a bit. Today has been a long day for him, after all. He might as well get ready for bed.

**Yuki-0708**

You should go to your shoot now...

The only reason Yuki is still trying to keep himself awake is because he knows that Tenma will always find ways to send him messages immediately even in the shortest breaks he gets in between shootings. And if he passes out on him now, he'd have to wait for hours (and even days) again before Tenma could be able to reply. But with the situation at hand, even his eyelids are about to give up.

**Tenma.S-621**

Heh. Knew it.

**Tenma.S-621**

You really can't sleep unless I talk your ass off, huh?

**Tenma.S-621**

If that's the case then, why don't you talk to someone else? Like Muku or what? Or Izumi? I'm sure they definitely wouldn't mind.

**Yuki-0708**

Trie3d....didnn't wo0rk.

**Yuki-0708**

For ssome reasoon, itt only wworks wwhenever I ttalk to you...

And that's the last thing Yuki types before he finally slips into the darkness.

☆

_"Come on, Yuki! What's with the long face?"_

_Yuki shuffled his feet. "Don't want to."_

_"Come on, come on. This scrapbook would be incomplete if our cute little brother isn't there, right?" The second sister then looked up at him. "Besides, you're wearing a cute dress today."_

_The cute part was true. Yuki was wearing a yellow sundress with a white bow tied behind him. The straw hat on his head just made him look even cuter._

_From an outsider's point of view, it looked like two sisters going on a stroll around the sleepy town._

_"Well, it's really cute. And it would be a shame if big sis doesn't see this..." Yuki then let his hand lean onto the tree. "Hurry it up, okay? We don't have all day."_

_"Of course, of course!" The second sister adjusted the camera until the focus was now on Yuki and the tree beside him. "Give a big smile for sis, okay?"_

_Yuki counted in his mind and let the time pass as he tried to adjust his smile._

_3...2...1..._

☆

_1:01 AM  
September 3, 2020_

**Tenma.S-621**

Just got back from shooting.

**Tenma.S-621**

Sigh. You really passed out on me.

**Tenma.S-621**

And what do you mean it only works on me? Hmph. Are ya trying to flatter me or something?

**Tenma.S-621**

Whatever, whatever. Rest well, okay?

**Tenma.S-621**

G'night, Yuki.

_3:30 AM_

**Tenma.S-621**

Tbh, I can't really sleep well without talking to you either...

☆

"...I'm sorry for this."

Yuki sighed, in disbelief that Izumi would worry over something like this. "I already expected this, you know? You don't have to worry about me, anyways."

"Because you're eighteen."

"Yes, because I'm old enough."

"And there's no report about Tenma's flight so far, huh?"

"Haven't heard from him about it. Just that he's suddenly gotten busy again."

Izumi hums. "You're going to be lonely again. And sleepless."

Yuki shrugs. "I'm used to it. I practically grew up not being able to sleep around much."

"But that's still unhealthy."

He thinks back at the letter again, of the long lost forgotten words he carefully traces with each stroke and character written on the paper. Of overdue apologies and explanations on promises from before broken as time passed.

Well, it's not like Yuki's bothered by it anymore. In the end, words are just words. Promises are just letters attached to overwhelming and bursting emotions. Yuki's learned enough not to hold onto them anymore. It's not like Yuki died when both of his sisters stepped out of their home. It's just that his sleepless nights increased. And that was good, right? More waking hours meant more time for him to perfect his own craft. 

And it shouldn't bother him anymore, right? He doesn't go home to a less empty house now. No. He has more people than he could ever imagine to fill in the spaces where they really need something to make it complete. And even if a few or so people leave, Yuki wouldn't mind one bit because there are still more people than he can count to replace those spaces. 

Even so, they still haunt him during those sleepless nights. Make him think of things he'd rather bury and leave behind.

What could be missing from the equation?

"Like I said, it'll be fine. So you don't have to worry about me that much. It just happens."

Izumi then takes ahold of Yuki's own hand, interlocking his gentle fingers with her clumsy ones. Yuki doesn't complain nor let go. In fact, he grips onto them as well. He was never really a sucker for physical affection. And he doesn't know if Izumi might have done something to change that.

But he likes it now, being held like this as if he means everything to someone.

Maybe his sisters did have a point whenever they'd go dramatic when it comes to affection like this.

"Just always remember," Izumi says. "That wherever we are, home will always be right here." And she points at Yuki's heart. "Where the people you love live."

And Yuki agrees with a smile, remembering all the people who he's cherished so far: his sisters, Mankai, Summer Troupe, Director...Tenma.

That, to him, is where home truly is. He wouldn't have it any other way.

"Of course. Good luck on your trip with the Autumn Troupe."

☆

_"So you can't really sleep, huh?"_

_Yuki's heavy eyelids almost jumped at Izumi's quiet voice. Immediately, he turned around just to see her and groaned before turning his attention back to the television screen which was showing a young on-screen Tenma walking into the woods with his actual father holding his hand._

_"For some reason, yeah. For days now, since Tenma left." he mumbled._

_Yuki feels a push on the couch and lavender scent going into his nose._

_"Well, it can't be helped," A pause. "Sorry if I haven't worked in making you sleep."_

_"...It's not like that. I appreciate the company so much," Yuki then turns to Izumi. "It's you who I should be thanking for all of this."_

_"Well, it's no problem!" Izumi exclaimed. "People don't deserve to be lonely, you know?"_

_Yuki buried his chin into his huddled up knees and let the memories of his sisters flood through his mind. "What if I always have been lonely?"_

_"Then it's not too late, you know?"_

_Something warm came up to Yuki's hand. Yuki graciously accepted it, held onto it, and let his head rest on Izumi's shoulder._

_"You know..."_

_"Yeah, Yuki?"_

_"You're...kind of like...my sister..."_

_"Really, who?"_

_Yuki took one last look at Tenma hugging his own father before he finally let his eyelids give in to the exhaustion._

_"The...second one..."_

☆

For the rest of the day, Tenma doesn't send a message.

Yuki tries to bury that thought away, instead focusing on the final assembly of the scrapbook in front of him. As some of the crew have plans for that night, it only leaves him, Masumi, Citron, and Homare to finish up the work. 

The thought of Tenma not messaging doesn't go away, however. But Yuki still tries to manage and do his work, above all things.

Surprisingly, both Citron and Homare have been very quiet as they stuck the leaves onto the corners of the page. It's almost unsettling that Masumi, for the first time since they've started, finally speaks.

"I don't like this silence."

Yuki finally sighs in relief. "Both the weirdos here have been quiet."

"That is true but..." Citron murmurs. "It is going to be silent again without the Autumn members."

"Ah, that is of nothing but pure truth," Homare adds. "It will just be...quite different without them around. Which is an interesting theory at work."

"Still not the same, though," Citron replies while he applies glue onto one of the leaves. "The first time I ran away from home, to tell the truth, I was scared. Leaving another country was scary. Leaving my brothers, Tangerine especially, was frightening.

"It almost felt like I was leaving all of me behind. I thought that I would get amnesia once I end up in Japan,"

But despite the sad talk, it seems to Yuki, Citron still manages to smile in thought.

"But then I realised that that's not how it works. Because when I came to Japan, I still had me. And I still do. It may not be the same Citron from yesterday or from before I left Japan. But nobody stays the same, right?"

He then pastes the leaf onto a corner of the page. "The Citron that was still in Zahra is still with the Citron now. He just gained new friends and improved as a result."

"I could find similarities of your excellent wording within myself," Homare muses. "The day I lost my grandparents, I thought that the robotic me that's always been in here would be gone. To me, it felt like freedom. To me, it felt like I could really become a full human.

"Alas, even the past will always have a grip onto me. To me, it felt like that part of home will never leave, which is utterly devastating. It made me suffer, knowing that it will never go away.

"But even if the structure of your home never changes, you can always change the parts that can be replaced. You can always, say, refurnish the things that have gone rotten."

And Homare smiles with a gentle look on his face. "The robotic and disorderly home within myself will never cease to exist. But it can always be polished and improved everyday, as long as I remember to put myself into the shoes of others. But most especially, it will only work if you let people in. Home isn't a home without people to fill your heart will everflowing love, after all."

"They do make a point," Masumi carefully traces the faces of a group picture of the Spring Troupe which is currently stuck to the middle of a page. "I always thought that if I left for America with my father, I'd finally have a chance to connect with someone who is my family. I mean, don't get me wrong. I don't like my parents. But sometimes, you can't help it when you're a kid and you haven't seen them in ages." His attention then turns to a picture of Izumi which is just right below theirs. "No matter how much you try to avoid it, you'll always end up wanting their approval.

"But someone very important to me said that family doesn't have to be formed by blood. I don't have to prove something to anyone when my family right now accepts me. And family is with the noisy bunch...and Director, of course."

"The point is," Homare concludes. "Homes and families...it is acceptable for mankind not to limit their attachments to merely their physical environments and viewpoints. Some homes may not just be homes, after all. They may just be houses. Empty houses with absolutely no emotional value nor pure attachment to it. But this world is a free world. And mankind is a voyaging nation. We will always be in search of something that will complete our own puzzle of emotions. That is something mankind can never go against."

"And for what reason can mankind not go against it?" Yuki finally asks as he takes the scrapbook and browses over it one last time.

"Because mankind is never destined to be alone. Being with someone doesn't have to be of physical distance. Physically, man can be alone. But in short-lived thoughts and memories, he will always have someone in mind who will make him keep on going for tomorrow. And the days afterwards, of course."

"In short," Masumi summarises. "People will always have someone around no matter what."

"Oh! That is a wonderful speech, coming from Homare himself."

Homare smirks with a hum. "I am a genius of words, after all."

Yuki then thinks back to Tenma, of nights spent texting him, of on-screen versions of him living out imagined lives and realities, of chocolate bath talks and autumns in Germany, of storms tearing them apart and flights trapping him in a whole different world, one that is out of Yuki's reach.

He thinks of the distance. How much they've been separated by the seas and the lands and yet nothing still changes between them. They're still the same pair that fight. They're still roommates, even if Tenma always goes away. They still end each other's days with their morning speeches and good night sentences.

And Yuki thinks, nothing changes even with the unbearable distance.

Even with Autumn Troupe's leave for two weeks, off to places they've never gone to before, home will always be at a near reach for them.

(Even if Tenma's been stranded for weeks now, their relationship and casual bickering never change either.)

☆

_"I always bother you with stuff like this, huh?"_

_It's one of the much rarer nights where they'd call, despite international calls being way expensive for Yuki's pocket to handle. But hey. For once, he'll give in._

_"Why are you acting so sulky about this?" Tenma's booming voice echoes through Yuki's ears. "That isn't like you at all. In fact, it's gross. What did you do to the real Yuki?"_

_"It's still me, dumbass," Yuki retorts. "I think someone like me can still feel bad about this, can I?"_

_"It's still not like you," Tenma replies. "And no, it's not bothering me. In fact, I pretty much enjoy this set-up."_

_"Oh, so now the hack is saying that he enjoys my company."_

_It takes a while before Tenma finally answers back._

_"It's not like that! It's just that here is less exciting. There's no Banri to go to karaoke with nor Misumi and Kazunari to bark at. Omi's food is way better than the shit I'm eating here."_

_"You eat in five-star restaurants more than three times a day."_

_"It's just...not the same."_

_"Come on, shitty actor. Just admit that you miss us a lot."_

_It takes a while again before Tenma replies._

_"...Maybe I do miss seeing you a lot."_

_And it takes even longer before Yuki can respond back_

_"...I miss you, too."_

☆

"And that's the last of it," Omi declares as he puts the luggage into the back of their second car. "Thanks for helping out with the luggage, guys."

Tasuku only nods. "It's nothing, really. Good luck on the trip."

Omi smiles. "Well, we're off now."

"Wait!"

All attention is now turned to Muku, who's been shuffling on his feet for some time now.

"Muku...what is it?" Azami asks with a slight hint of worry in his tone.

Muku takes a deep breath before getting the scrapbook from Kazunari's grip. "Here," He then shoves it to Omi's hands. "Something to remember us by. So you'll always think of us even when you're out there."

The entire Autumn Troupe gather around as Omi starts to flip through the autumn-themed scrapbook. "Wait...there are some familiar pictures here..."

Tsumugi nervously chuckles. "Let's just say I was in on this too."

"And my pictures!" Taichi exclaims. "They're here too..."

Banri almost stifles his laughter at a page. "Holy shit...is that Homare sleeping on Hisoka's lap?"

As if by cue, Hisoka goes back to consciousness. "Wait what-"

"This is very thoughtful," Sakyo smiles fondly as Omi goes through the pages some more. "Thank you, from the bottom of our hearts."

"But of course," Juza smiles. "You're not the only ones with surprises."

The rest of Autumn Troupe's eyes then focus at Taichi. And that's when Taichi finally tears up.

"I got accepted into a modelling job!"

And everyone else cheers for him in unison, patting him on his back as they express their words of congratulations.

Yuki only thinks to himself, _Holy shit...the hack really did it._

"Ten-chan hooked me up to this famous modelling agency and I got called right away! I'm gonna start my job immediately after the national tour."

It's Tsumugi who ruffles Taichi's hair with affection. "Well, we'll be cheering you on from here on out. The same we'll do for the rest of you for this tour."

"Good luck, dayo!"

"We'll be thinking of y'all!"

And as they drive away into the horizon, Yuki's wave seems to have slowed down first.

"It's sad," he utters, the deja vu finally hitting him. He remembers performing this same move as well while watching his sisters drive away to better places, to better opportunities and lives...leaving him alone in the soon-turned barren house.

It hits him painfully for a bit before Azuma's voice finally cuts through it.

"It is."

Yuki sighs. "This deja vu hits too hard."

"Oh?" Now this piques Azuma's curiosity. "How so, I wonder?"

"...my sisters."

Azuma hums in understanding. "So this is how they left as well?"

"Weirdly...yeah. When my first sister left, we gave her a scrapbook. When my second sister left, I made her mittens."

The other man chuckles. "That sounds cute."

Yuki recalls the very first time he found out that one of them would leave, remembers how painful it was for him to breathe, flashbacks to the time the world before him went dark. 

"Trust me, it's not."

"Departures are always sad, no?" Azuma says. "But truth to be told, nothing can truly break a bond born out of sentimentality. And that's because in one way or another, every person you meet will always leave an imprint on you.

" _That's_ what truly makes up a home."

☆

_4:19 AM  
_ _September 6, 2020_

**Tenma.S-621**

It's me.

**Tenma.S-621**

Sorry I took so long.

**Tenma.S-621**

We're gonna be flying in a few mins.

**Tenma.S-621**

So you better remember that promise you made or I'll get mad.

☆

_4:20 PM  
_ _September 7, 2020_

Yuki comes home to a pile of luggage on his door.

The realisation finally hits from there.

"Tenma..."

Immediately, he opens the door wide open only to not see the man in question in his room. It shocks Yuki and makes him suspicious.

"What the..."

On Tenma's table, he finds two things.

The first thing he sees is a wooden nameplate, the very thing Taichi was talking about days back. And it seemed that Omi might have forgotten to put their names because instead of his calligraphy, he finds Tenma's writing, along with a weirdly painted bonsai on the side. On his own side of the nameplate is a sticky note:

**I'm not done with mine yet. So let's work on this when we get home, okay? - T.S.**

_Wait, we?_

The second is a letter with Yuki's name right at the top. He knows this writing all too well. So without any second thought, he picks up the letter and proceeds to read it:

**Hey, Yuki.**

**You didn't fulfill our promise. Which is why I'll make you do it.**

**Meet me at the Veludo Airport. I'll be waiting and I won't leave until you come.**

**Tenma.**

It pisses Yuki off, of course. But he spares no second thought here as well.

He changes out of his uniform and into his casual clothes, making sure that his beret won't fall off. Afterwards, Yuki grabs the letter and his phone and barges out of the dorms and into the streets.

Just what was this hack thinking? It's not even the thirtieth anymore, right? So why is he still insisting on this?

☆

_"I think I'm free on the thirtieth," Yuki said. "So you better prepare your ass because I'll bring out the best welcome home greeting I can give."_

_Tenma huffs rather happily. "You better fulfill your end on that or I will make you do it."  
_

_Then, Yuki guessed, He just has to appear in front of the airport, right?_

☆

Yuki isn't much of an earphones kind of person. But he still brings them out as he chases the next bus, hoping that he'd make it in time before the sun finally sets. For some reason, music helps him rush to where he's supposed to be. And right now especially, when Tenma's leaving him even more questions than answers, Yuki is in dire need of that boost.

The music that comes off from his earphones isn't a Japanese song. It's, rather, a nifty English song that he randomly found on the internet just last week. For some reason however, the song fully resonates with him, hits him in his most vulnerable parts especially.

Yuki thinks that this song, right now, truly fits in the situation he is right now.

Because no matter the distance, no matter where they are and might end up, they will always reconnect at some point just enough for them to greet each other a, "Welcome home."

Yuki knows that now.

_("Took a morning ride to the place where you and I were supposed to meet  
The city yawns, they echo on  
My thoughts are spinning on and on my head, it seems  
They lead me back to you  
I keep coming back to you")_

☆

_Yuki remembers one of those conversations he's had with Tenma once._

_It was on a rare occasion when they were both out of the dorms and thousands of miles away from each other. Tenma had been in London. Yuki, on the other hand, had been in Hokkaido for a school trip. For whatever reason they had, they decided to call each other on one of those nights._

_"You know, it'll be hard once we really separate," Tenma mused. "We'll have to graduate from Mankai, eventually."_

_Sadly, Tenma had a point there._

_"I know," Yuki mumbled. "Doesn't mean we'll have to stop talking forever, right?"_

_"I'm aware of that. But things get busier for us the more we grow up. College, jobs, other relationships we have to prioritise."_

_Yuki stared at the horizon dividing both the sea and the sky in silence._

_"We can always find a way, you know...when we cross the bridge, I mean."_

_("Took a morning ride, found a place up in my mind, no one else can see  
Maybe it's fate that we lose control  
In circles around, we go")_

☆

Unfortunately, it looks like Yuki wouldn't be able to make it by the time the sun is about to set.

The traffic going to the airport has been stretched up until ten blocks away. And unless Yuki decides to finally run by foot, he wouldn't make it sooner.

He thinks of Tenma again, of the poor idiot who's probably lost in a different terminal by now, of his stupid antics just to fulfill a rotten promise, and Yuki sighs in acceptance that he'll really have to go down this path.

He finally stands up from his seat and bows to the conductor.

"I'm sorry. I think I can run from here."

The bus door opens on cue. Yuki wastes no time.

He runs through the streets.

_("We become who we ought to know_  
_We just gotta let it go")_

He manages to send a text to Tenma despite the roads and sidewalks he's been jaywalking and running through. Despite all the people he's bumped and apologised to for his negligence and rush.

**Yuki-0708**

Wait for me, idiot. And don't fucking leave. I'm almost there.

☆

_As he looked at his own luggage, Yuki couldn't help but feel bad for his mother._

_"You know," his mom whispered as they looked out into the view from their balcony, possibly for the last time. "I never would've expected to see my children grow into the people I could be proud of."_

_Yuki could only look at her with a frown. "But your last child will be leaving you, too. Doesn't that make you sad?"_

_It took a minute before his mom can finally respond. "To tell you the truth, it does. Your father is always out and I really had nothing to hold onto but you three."_

_"So...why didn't you stop me?"_

_"...I can't just hold onto you, forever. You're a big boy now, Yuki."_

_Finally, she brought up her hand to caress Yuki's cheek with probably the widest smile she's had in months._

_"Things will always change in this house. But as long as you keep me in your memory, then this home will never die. And that's what's important."_

_("We just gotta let it go")_

☆

Luckily, Yuki couldn't find the need to text Tenma anymore.

He's already standing in front of the arrival area, still wearing the ridiculous jacket and pants combo on his body and annoying shades on his face. Still looking around, hoping that he could find Yuki.

"I'm here,"

Tenma's head finally turns to Yuki, smiling.

"Thought you'd get lost," Tenma remarked.

"I could say the same for you. To have Igawa drive you this far for a promise that's way overdue."

Tenma tries to tuck his hair behind his ear, a blush forming across his cheeks as his head turns away from the younger. "Of course I have to. I don't let go of promises easily."

Yuki could only laugh in response. "Then that makes us different in that area. Good for you."

"Hmph. Now come on. Say it."

"Hold on a minute, shitty actor," Yuki cuts him. "I also came home from school. The least you could do is to do the same to me."

"Ha?! But-!"

"No buts. Where are your manners?"

Tenma sighs, finally facing him once again. "Fine, fine. We'll say it on the count of three, then."

"Hmph. You're just making the situation more complicated than it already is. Fine, fine. Let's count down to one."

Tenma nods. "Three..."

"...two..."

"...one..."

And their voices mixed together with the warmest words of welcoming back ring loud enough to silence everything else around them.

And to them, it's all that matters at this moment.

Their presence, just standing right in front of them with their rosy cheeks and wide smiles, is what matters.

That, to them, is already the best version of home they could find.

_("So I'm coming home to you")_

☆

☆

☆

**Dear Yuki,**

**It's been some time, hasn't it? And you know how your big sis here doesn't really do well with letters. But I tried my very very best here! So don't ignore this, okay?**

**I think deep in my heart, I want to say sorry for breaking our promise, the promise to stay together until we can get out of the house together. I know we can't avoid change at all. But at the very least, I wanted to protect it. And yet I failed you. I'm very sorry.**

**But at the same time, maybe it's good that I did. And I'm proud of you, especially. You found a better place to belong to, after all. You have friends that you can now consider your family. You have a bigger house now with even more people to fill it. That's something you can never find in our family house. I think it's safe to say that among us, you've found the best version of home you can ever find.**

**However, I don't think that's what home is to me.**

**Home is a free space, after all. You can find it everywhere you go, even if you leave the Earth. It's endless and not just a singular concept.**

**Wherever you go, you'll always make your mark there: in places, through time, with the people you'll meet. And even if you forget, the nostalgia and vividness of it will always bring you back to those same places.**

**Home never dies. As long as the memory is there. As long as the feeling of closeness is there. As long as you've made your mark in those places.**

**I could never be a more proud sibling for you're making that kind of impact right now.**

**I also included that very first picture I took of you when we were making a scrapbook for our sister. Do you remember that? You were very stubborn about it until I called your dress cute. Some things never change, huh?**

**Don't worry. I have copies. So you can keep it close to you.**

**Wherever you go and whatever you will do next, at least you will have a part of that home you can hold close to as you make new memories in places you've never been too. As you make new homes in places you've yet to explore.**

**Big sis and I will always cheer you on in whatever you do. That's a promise.**

**Until then,  
Your lovable, the-more-artsy sister** ****

**Author's Note:**

> my shoulder hurts holy shit and im shakign AHSHDHJFH I CANT BELIEVE I FINISHED IT
> 
> there were so many things i wanted to add here, including a personal arrangement to really change yuki's roommate because of his sleep problems and yuki finally bidding his first sister goodbye only to realise that his second sister might leave to. but i left it at just that mostly because i cant think anymore and my shoulder pain is stopping me from doing this
> 
> this fic was mainly born out of realising that yuki's age gap with his sisters might have made him experience seeing his sisters leave for good even at an early age. as a result, he doesn't take promises as seriously (as far as this aspect is concerned) and he's mostly okay with just being left alone. but of course, being in mankai and meeting tenma has made him turn his views around. which is good. boy does not deserve to be alone.
> 
> anyways, if you've made it to this point, thank you so much for reading through the end. comment, crits, and kudoses are always appreciated!!
> 
> EDIT: gonna drop some little tidbits abt the fic since i brainrotted over it last night:  
> \- after the airport meeting, tenma treated yuki out in lawson since they both got hungry. they then went home and painted their nameplate together. they fell asleep in each other's arms at 4 am bc haha gay :)  
> -(omi did not write their names on purpose and he told akigumi abt it during their regionals. taichi worships him like a god now because EVERYONE except for tenyuki know how much they've been pining for each other for the last three years or so)  
> \- and if i were to make a part 2, it would be tenma finally confessing to yuki...just as yuki was about to get on the bus for his field trip. yuki angrily overthinks about it. muku is a concerned friend. tenma refuses to text or call back for explanations


End file.
